A Distributed Antenna System (DAS) is a network of spatially separated antenna nodes connected to a common node via a transport medium that provides wireless service within a geographic area or structure. Common wireless communication system configurations employ a host unit as the common node, which is located at a centralized location (for example, at a facility that is controlled by a wireless service provider). The antenna nodes and related broadcasting and receiving equipment, located at a location that is remote from the host unit (for example, at a facility or site that is not controlled by the wireless service provider), are also referred to as “remote units.” Radio frequency (RF) signals are communicated between the host unit and one or more remote units. In such a DAS, the host unit is typically communicatively coupled to one or more base stations (for example, via wired connections or via wireless connection) which allow bidirectional communications between wireless subscriber units within the DAS service area and communication networks such as, but not limited to, cellular phone networks, the public switch telephone network (PSTN) and the Internet. A DAS can provide, by its nature, an infrastructure within a community that can scatter remote units across a geographic area for providing wireless services across that area.
When a DAS is deployed, the different remote units are placed in different environments. In particular, each remote unit is located at a position that is subject to a different radio frequency environment. Frequently, these different environments are caused by the different RF signal sources located in the RF environment. For example, RF signal sources include wireless terminals in communication with the DAS, other remote units in the DAS, sources that provide interfering RF energy, and the like. The different RF environments associated with the individual remote units can negatively affect the operation of the DAS.
For the reasons stated above and for other reasons stated below which will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the specification, there is a need in the art for systems and methods for adjusting the remote units after deployment to adapt to different operating environments.